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Friday, June 15, 2012

Recipe for Zucchini Bake with Feta and Thyme

(For Phase One Fridays I highlight Phase One recipes from the past that have been my personal favorites. I am just starting to get zucchini and yellow squash in my garden, and this is favorite zucchini side dish will be on the menu soon!)

This is a recipe I came up with to use the surplus of zucchini in the garden, so I'm begging for understanding from readers who don't have garden veggies available. The good news is that this recipe can easily be made with zucchini and yellow squash from the store or farmers market too. I consider this to be a season-spanning vegetable side dish, but with the protein from a couple of eggs and the feta cheese, it could easily be a main dish too.

The first time I made this I used three eggs and only 1/2 cup of feta. It was good, but the second version with only 2 eggs and a cup of crumbled feta was definitely better (in my feta-obsessed opinion.) This makes about six servings, so even with the increased amount of feta, it's less than an ounce per serving, and my favorite sheep's milk feta has only 6 grams of fat per ounce (4.5 grams saturated fat) so I think even with the increased amount of feta this is a pretty South Beach Diet friendly recipe.

I love thyme, and like to experiment using it in dishes where you might not expect it, so I used fresh thyme leaves in this. If you don't have fresh thyme, you can easily use dried thyme.

I used two medium-sized yellow squash and two medium-sized zucchini, which gave me almost 8 cups of sliced squash. (That's a giant 8-cup measuring cup that I inherited from my stepmother, and which I absolutely love.) I used my mandoline to cut the squash into even 1/4 inch slices, but you can cut it with a knife as well.

I sauteed the garlic and thyme leaves for a few seconds to flavor the oil, then added the squash and cooked it about 4 minutes. It will cook a lot more in the oven, so it doesn't need to be very cooked at this point.

While the squash cooks, beat the eggs and then stir in the sour cream, crumbled feta, parmesan, and lemon.

Layer about half the squash in the bottom of a casserole dish, then season with salt and fresh ground black pepper. (Not too much salt, because feta is pretty salty.) I used this two-quart casserole I bought with a gift certificate I got from teachers at school.

Then pour about half the feta-egg mixture over the squash and use the back of the spoon or a rubber scraper to spread it over the surface.

Layer the rest of the squash and the rest of the feta-egg mixture over the top of it. You can season the top with pepper if you forget to season the second layer like I did! bake at 375F/190C for about 40 minutes, or until the mixture is bubbling, slightly set looking, and lightly browned on top. Serve hot.

Zucchini Bake with Feta and Thyme
(Makes about 6 side-dish servings, recipe created by Kalyn)

Preheat oven to 375F/190C. Wash and dry squash, then cut off stem and blossom end and discard. Cut squash lengthwise in half, then slice into half-moon slices about 1/4 inch thick. (I used a mandoline with the 7mm blade, but you can use a knife.)

Heat olive oil in large non-stick frying pan, add garlic and thyme leaves and saute about 45 seconds (just long enough to season the oil, don't let the garlic brown.) Add squash slices and saute about 4 minutes, turning a few times. Squash should be barely starting to soften.

While squash cooks, break eggs into a small bowl or glass measuring cup and beat until egg yolks and whites are combined. Stir in sour cream, feta, parmesan, and lemon juice.

Spray a 2 quart gratin dish or glass casserole dish with non-stick spray or olive oil. Layer half the squash in the dish, then season with salt and fresh ground black pepper. (Remember the feta is salty, so it won't need a lot of salt.) Pour over half the egg-feta mixture and use the back of a spoon or a rubber scraper to spread it over the squash. Repeat with another layer of squash and the rest of the feta-egg mixture.

Bake at 375F/190C for 40-45 minutes, or until the mixture is bubbling, slightly set, and top if lightly browned. Serve hot.

This will keep in the fridge for a day or two. For best results, I recommend reheating in a toaster oven. Do not freeze.

Feta is pretty low in fat compared to a lot of other cheeses, and using light sour cream and olive oil, plus only a small amount of parmesan makes this a good choice for any phase of the South Beach Diet. If you're a South Beach Dieter, I'd stick to a moderate serving size and go easy on the fat for the rest of the meal. This would taste great with something like Southwestern Pot Roast or Grilled Fusion Chicken.

Nutritional Information?
I chose the South Beach Diet to manage my weight partly so I wouldn't
have to count calories, carbs, points, or fat grams, but if you want
nutritional information for a recipe, I recommend entering the recipe
into Calorie Count, which will calculate it for you.

(This recipe was first posted as an entry for Weekend Herb Blogging, hosted by Chriesi from Almond Corner. WHB is now managed by Haalo, who has posted the rules and who's hosting for your information if you'd like to participate.)

Posts may include links to my affiliate account at Amazon.com, and this blog earns a few cents on the dollar if readers purchase the items I recommend, so thanks for supporting my blog when you shop at Amazon!

80 comments:

I, too, am feta-obsessed. And thyme-obsessed (I have 5 thyme plants, plus 2 lemon thyme, in my herb garden). And the zucchini are starting to appear on my porch, from friends whose gardens are hit by the glut. Perfect timing for this recipe.

You have my understanding. I wish I were in the same boat, i.e., with a huge surplus of zucchini. As it is, I must rely on the farmers' market. Very nice recipe: I have some feta-like cheese I can use for it.

We are also feta-obsessed, and people keep giving us bags of zucchini from their gardens. This would make a great lunch with a piece of whole grain bread, or a really nice, filling side...might be a good brunch dish, too..... Thanks!

Anonymous, any type of cheese that melts well and you like the flavor of would work here, since zucchini is a bland flavor that goes well with lots of other flavors. If you use a really mild cheese, I might add more herbs.

Linda, it might cook fine without being pre-sauteed, but I did it for two reasons. One was to get more of the flavor of sauteed garlic into the zucchini. The other reason was because I was afraid that just baking the zucchini would make it the finished dish watery. I could be wrong about that; would love to know how it works if you try it without sauteing the zucchini first.

We made it last night. Put in a bit of red bell pepper to the zucchini and then shrimp for the last minute, then poured into a 9x9 glass pan. After baking thirty minutes, I removed dish and sprinkled with shredded Jarlsberg cheese and a bit of Grana Padano cheese for the rest of the baking time. A winner!

This is a great way to use zucchini. I often put zucchini in pasta sauces, or saute them with other veggies for low-cal burritos. I always buy a ton of zucchinis at the farmer's market...so this will be great. Thank you!

Kalyn, I tried it again tonight with pre-cooking the zucchini. To my surprise, it was not watery at all. I thought when I peeked in mid-way through the cooking time that I saw alot of bubbling and thought it was watery, but it must have all evaporated because it wasn't at all. It was still very very tasty.

So if somebody's looking to save some time, that's a viable option I think.

I had a giant zucchini that a colleague gave me and decided to try this recipe. Added more sour cream (1/2 cup) and one stir fried onion - it came out great! The feta/egg mixture tasted almost like a cheese souffle. Thanks for the recipe!

I am making this tonight!! I only have two zucchinis in the fridge though, so I think i'll supplement with the broccoli I've been wondering what to do with. I'll also be using ash-aged goat cheese made by my organic dairy farmer friend instead of feta. Been looking for something creative to do with that, too! Can't wait to try it!

This was delicious! I am sure reheating in an oven would be best, but I really enjoyed leftovers reheated in the microwave for breakfast. I liked mine best with Sirachi sauce on top. Thank you for the recipe.

I made this recipe and doubled the garlic (2 large, fresh-picked, home-grown cloves), added about a tablespoon of chopped fresh tarragon, and a large onion sliced and then slowly cooked until soft. I added the onion in layers with the zucchini and the liquid egg-cheese mix.

I also used Costco sheep-goat feta (from Greece). I think the main thing with this recipe is to flavor it up because of how bland 8 cups of zucchini can be.

I also tossed in a handful of dried tomatoes from my harvest last year (Roma paste tomatoes).

Thanks for the recipe Kalyn! It is one of my favorites. I have featured this recipe over at Favorite Family Recipes (favfamilyrecipes.com) and linked over to you. Love the site & keep up the good work!

This is one of our favorite dinners now. I always double the sauce part sometime even a little more than double and I've also added ground sausage or ground beef and then top it with sliced cherry tomatoes. (I love a one-dish dinner) Very yummy and I always look forward to leftovers for lunch the next day!! Thanks for the recipe!

Hi, I tried this recipe with a few changes. I cut down the amounts by half , also I cooked the zucchini a little longer, so the baking time could be shorter. In the end they were nice and crispy. Since thime is not my favourite herb I substituted oregano.I added more grated parmesan cheese once on the plate, as I found it tasted a bit strong from the lemon and herbs. I love the stuff too. Great recipe!

I love squash of all kinds and plant them yearly in my garden. I tried this recipe last night and, although tasty, the egg mixture had a thick, custard consistency. Perhaps I needed to put it in a flatter dish and spread out the mixture or maybe my eggs were too big. Would it have helped to add cream or 1/2 and 1/2 to the egg/cheese mix?

If you mean mix it up, store in the fridge, and cook later, I have never done it that way so I'm not sure how it would work. I've certainly eaten leftovers after they've been in the fridge though, and that worked just fine.

Thanks for your quick reply. I've made this several times and it is FABULOUS! I have a huge meal planned for tomorrow and thought perhaps an early prep would ease the load. No worries - I'll give early prep a try when company is not in the mix :)

Maybe it's a matter of opinion, but I feel that zucchini, dairy products, and eggs all don't freeze well. (They either get too soft or get watery.) You could try freezing a serving or two and see what you think.

I'm so happy you're taking the time to comment on Kalyn's Kitchen! I love hearing from people who stop by, especially if you're sharing feedback or asking questions about a recipe I've posted here.

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